


An Orchestrated Chain of Events

by IntrovertedHappiness



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Idk what to tag this as, i didn't even edit it oof, i guess, i just wanted to put it in case, otherwise enjoy, tell me if you think it needs another warning, the warning is kinda touched on but not in a major way
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-08
Updated: 2019-10-08
Packaged: 2020-11-27 07:55:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20944940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IntrovertedHappiness/pseuds/IntrovertedHappiness
Summary: Kravitz's orchestra had won three years in a won, which was practically unheard of. Because of this, many other competitors were growing sour. How far where they willing to get Kravitz out of the competition? Well, you'll find out.





	An Orchestrated Chain of Events

As a bard, Kravitz was good at music. It was sort of his job to be. From a young age, he had taken to learning everything about music and what it could do. When he discovered that there was magic weaved within the thing he most loved? Kravitz took up the seemingly obvious offer and started training to be a bard. It was not difficult to do, though some people protested that a “young man like you should be doing something more physical than playing the piano!” He didn’t care for their words and ignore them with only a bit of difficulty.

As he fostered his talent for music and magic, he grew not only in power but in popularity. But the time he was an adult, Kravitz was conducting his own orchestra, competing in any competition they managed to join.

They competed in Faerun’s biggest competitive orchestra competition one year and, despite not winning, Kravitz and his orchestra made their mark. That was the first time they played for a crowd that had over fifty people in it. By the end of the competition, they were known widely across Faerun.

They competed again next year and won.

The year after that? They won again.

Their third year, another win.

People across the land were supporting them all the way. It wasn’t often that an orchestra won three years in a row, and people were getting rowdy by the time they were set to compete in their fourth year. Kravitz and his orchestra practiced day and night, nearly none stop. The night before the competition, he let them all go home a little early. They deserved it and they needed to be well-rested before performing the next day.

That night, Kravitz was walking home in the dark, excitement coursing through his body. He tried to calm himself down as he walked, knowing it’d be harder to sleep with the mood he had now. Maybe it was because of his focus on the event happening tomorrow and how he needed sleep, but Kravitz didn’t notice until it was too late. An orc man- hidden within the trees nearby, casting a spell on him. Kravitz was asleep before his face even hit the pavement.

He woke up tied to a pole in the middle of a large chamber. A group of people was huddled nearby and when they noticed he was awake, the leader of the group walked towards him. He was dressed in thick, dark blue robes. Kravitz struggled against his binds as the man approached.

“Kravitz?” the man asked, not unkindly, and Kravitz nodded, confused by the apparent softness in the man’s voice. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Kravitz. I’ve heard so much about your music.”

Kravitz tried to thank the man but found that he couldn’t say a word. He struggled to speak as the man went on.

“You are certainly a good bard, aren’t you?” the man chuckled. “I suppose that’s why we had to take away your voice. Can’t have you muttering any  _ songs _ , can we?”

If he could speak, his voice would have been desperate and confused. The man tutted at him.

“None of that, sir,” he said happily. “Now I know you’re wondering why you’re here! Why we have you tied up. Why you can’t  _ speak _ . Is that right?”

Kravitz nodded quickly and the man laughed, deep and full.

“You’ve been a  _ thorn _ in quite a few people’s sides!” The man said. “You and your orchestra have won… what? Three years in a row? Imagine how many others could have won if you had simply never even played! Imagine how  _ easy _ it would be to chop off all your fingers and never have you play an instrument again? Imagine tearing up your throat so you can no longer speak? Imagine just- just getting rid of your arms, so you can no longer conduct! Ha!”

Around him, everyone laughed. Kravtiz was trembling now, mind starting to realize why exactly he was here.

“But no… no, we are not here to do that,” the man said, wiping a tear of laughter from his eye. “We’ve been paid very handsomely to get rid of you completely, Kravitz. Any way we can, though I think our customer mentioned that we should try a  _ particularly violent  _ tactic. Now, whatever that tactic is, is up to us. But dear, sweet, Kravitz, I’d just thought I’d be honest with you. 

_ So many people will be happy with the news of your death _ .”

Kravitz shuddered, closing his eyes, trying to stop tears from coming. He was  _ terrified _ and couldn’t imagine what he was about to go through. When he opened his eyes, the man in front of him was gone. Around him, the others lined up. The man’s voice came from behind him now.

“Kravitz, we are a group of very loyal and devoted people. Our god, Vecna, will someday know our names. But until then, we work in his name and in the name of those who pay.”

The voice was right next to his ear now. He could feel the body heat from the man radiating off him.

“Goodbye, Kravitz. I hope you enjoy the astral plane!”

\--

Kravitz didn’t know much about the astral plane, but he supposed this was it. The second he died he was flicked into a river as if he was just a drop of water. Well, in this case, he really was. He was surrounded by so many other  _ beings _ . They talked to each other in quiet, worn, but excited voices. He gathered that they were going downstream into the afterlife. Different souls bumped against him, eager to reach their destination.

He knew this was supposed to be a… calming experience. Visiting with others as you waited to get into the afterlife would seem like a good thing if not for all the raging emotions he felt. While most of the other souls were light, airy blue, Kravitz’s soul was hot red. He felt like he was burning and the “water” (or whatever it was) around him bubbled as if boiling. The other souls drifted away from where he was, careful not to get too close. He couldn’t seem to calm himself down.

He should have  _ known _ that something like this would happen. The last conductor who had lead his orchestra to win over and over had been killed as well. Or at least, they said she was. They never found her body but she was most certainly dead at this point. The people who competed were… ruthless. It wasn’t just about winning, Kravitz knew, it was about the prize money. More riches than one could ever imagine and something that made Kravitz so popular among Faerun is that he never took his winnings. He let his orchestra evenly give it out between them, and then gave the rest away to charities. He didn’t  _ need _ the money. He didn’t  _ want _ it.

There were competitors who had confronted him about this, as well. Why even compete if you aren’t gonna take your winnings for yourself? They had grown angry that Kravitz answered the same thing every year.

“Because life will find a way to bring me what I need. I want to give to those who think life has given up on them before they give up on life.”

Still, he was ignorant in thinking that nothing would happen. And with him, ignorance often leads to anger. He found the river around him boiling hot, leaving a wake of steam and bubbles in his way. He was causing a backup in the river, making it almost impossible for other souls to go around his slow-moving form. Kravitz didn’t care right now. He was inraged and burning hot.

Until two large hands cupped around his form and brought him carefully out of the river.

Suddenly, Kravitz had his body back and he was on his knees. He wasn’t wearing his usual suit- just dark, soft, and neatly fitting clothes. He could feel grass beneath his hands and feet, though he couldn’t quite feel it. He looked around wildly, his anger draining into wonder, and was met face to face with a very tall woman.

She wore a ravens skull over her face, with bits of silver intertwined like strings. A long, flowing black dress fit snuggly around her and faded into nothingness at the edges. Draped over her shoulders was a cloak of feathers. Kravitz didn’t know how he knew that she was a Goddess. Perhaps it was the air of power she displayed. Perhaps it was the furious, crackling magic that surrounded her. Perhaps she was just so obviously ethereal that he realized it at once.

“ _ YOU ARE KRAVITZ _ ,” she said, powerful voice so soft and meaningful that Kravitz could have staggered back merely at her words.

“I- I am,” Kravitz confirmed, though it didn’t really need to be.

“ _ YOU BLOCK MY SEA OF SOULS FROM CONTINUING ON ITS PATH TO THE AFTERLIFE. YOU HALT THESE PEOPLE FROM REACHING THEIR PEACE. WHAT ARE YOUR INTENTIONS, KRAVITZ? _ ”

“I…” Kravitz said, shifting nervously. “I did not mean to- to stop the sea from flowing. I was… angry, I suppose, and unknowingly ceased its flow.”

“ _ ANGRY? _ ” the Goddess questioned. “ _ MY SEA FLOWS SO THAT EMOTIONS RUN CALM AND SOULS ARE AT THEIR MOST NATURAL STATE. YOU WERE IN THERE FOR LONGER THAN TIME NEEDED TO BE CALMED. WHAT HAS YOU SO POWERFULLY UPSET, MY CHILD? _ ”

Kravitz breathed, looking up at her as he recalled the terrible ending to his life. He told her what he did for a job. How happy he had been. How wonderful his orchestra sounded in the silent concert halls, and how the thunderous applause that followed filled him to the brim with joy. Then, he told her of how people grew angry at him to the point of murder. He told her, voice shaking with both fear and anger, of the people who had killed him for pay. Of how they destroyed his mental state over the course of a few hours, and then his body. Of how  _ unfair _ it all was that he got  _ this ending  _ after all he had done with his life.

When he finished, the air around them crackled with anger coming from the Goddess.

“ _ THIS STORY _ ,” she snarled into the silence. “ _ IS NOT ACCEPTABLE _ .”

Kravitz saw her kneel down in front of his and pull a silver string from her skull mask. She stretched and curved it into a silvery scythe. She placed it, along with a fistful of feathers from her cloak, into his hands.

  
“ _ GO, _ ” she commanded seriously. “ _ MAKE YOUR ENDING FAIR AND REPORT BACK TO ME. WE WILL  _ ** _NEVER_ ** _ HAVE THIS HAPPEN AGAIN _ .”


End file.
